Creating a Local History E-Community

Archive for May 30th, 2009

This was published in the Sydney Morning Herald in April 27, 1947 by Bill Beatty and seems to based on the Henry Kendall (An Australian Poet who had cousins at Kiama and wrote about nine poems set around Kiama) poem below.

This possibly is further based on the murder of Robert Fox by James (or John) Tobin at the Marks farm near Jamberoo. This was reported in the Sydney Morning Herald of Friday May 13, 1836, (stated it happened April last)

and in a later article reported him hung. Both were ticket-of -leave men and Tobin had claimed that three bushrangers had broken into the house previously, stole the only gun,and then returned some days later and murdered Fox with two axes. The story fell apart based on the condition of the axes and Tobin’s previous death threats. It is conceivable that a garbled and enhanced account of this was passed down and reached Henry Kendall’s ears. In some accounts the Inn is specificically mentioned as the ex-cedar getter David Smith’s Gum Tree Inn, in Kiama, which is regarded as the first structure built in Kiama, and David Smith as Kiama’s first official European resident.

A GHOST STORY. – The following is from theKiama Pilot :-One night last week, a youngman was coming from Shoalhaven, when hebeheld what he believes was a ghost, or some-thing very like one. On crossing Mount Plea-sant, he was riding leisurely along, the nightbeing dark, but sufficiently light enough toenable him to discern objects, when, withoutany previous intimation, his horse started atsomething. Simultaneously, a strange noise washeard, and on looking down to the side of theroad he beheld the spectre. The head was onlyvisible, and he describes it as being larger insize than a cow’s. The ears were as long as aperson’s arm, while the eyes appeared as largeas a man’s fist, and kept whirling round andround. The horse immediately started, and didnot halt till near Kiama. We have been informedthat another individual observed somethingstartling one Sunday night, not long ago, aboutthe small hours, He was returning home,andwhen between Mount Pleasant and Kiama,a creature in the form of a man, about sixfeet in height, with black stripes down eachof his legs, and minus a head, made its ap-pearance very near his horse’s head. The indi-vidual looked at it, and continued his course, butseveral times he noticed it following him at abrisk pace. He immediately put spurs to hishorse, and the ghost, taking the hint, quickenedhis pace. They raced for some distance, whensuddenly the spectre “vanished into thin air.”Such are the circumstances as related to us.We refrain from giving any opinion on thematter. They were related to us in all sincerityon the night of the occurrence, and the witnesswas very nervous, and ” all of a shake